What about Colt Gold Cup?

[Johnny Lightning]

So my dilemma is that I love Colt pistols and would like to own one but am not sure if they would be considered as good as a Les Bear, Ed Brown, Wilson, etc.... I actually would like to find a series 70 gold cup, they have some frills but not too many and are supposed to be very accurate. It seems that these days if someone is talking about a deadly accurate 1911 it is always a newer pistol and almost always a brown, bear, wilson, or of comparison to those manufactures. Are the Colts hand fitted or are they made on a production line like a TRP would be? It seems that for a really high end 1911 you are paying for the hand fitting and machined parts not MIM parts.

 

[GLOOB]

A friend of mine got a recent manufacture Gold Cup. It's one of the most accurate handguns I've ever fired, although I've never shot a $2000 1911. The FP safety gives the trigger a little bit of pretravel, but to me it's worth the extra peace of mind. They appear to be a good value, IMO.

 

[Finprof]

Gold Cup

I have a Series 70 Gold Cup that still looks new along with two custom 1911s for Bullseye shooting. The Gold Cup cost me $950 and is prettier than just about anything else. There is something about that deep Colt blue on a Gold Cup that makes you look at it every time you take it out. Mine is sufficiently accurate to shoot in hardball matches and plenty of others do the same with theirs.
In my opinion a Series 70 Gold Cup is just about the best deal on the market. It is only a couple hundred more than a run-of-the-mill new 1911 and is both a lot prettier and a lot more accurate than what you can buy for $700 or so. I am not sure whether this generalization applies to newer models.

 

[Mike OTDP]

They are OK, not great. The triggers are fair, the slide and barrel benefit from being fitted. Get one worked over by a good bullseye gunsmith and they can be quite nice.

 

[38 Super Fan]

The older Gold Cups were hand fitted, and they were very good 1911s, some of the best guns to ever roll out of the Colt factory without a doubt. In the 70s quality started to go downhill at Colt, by the late 70s there wasn't nearly as much work going into the Gold Cups as before, sadly they were really pretty average guns, and have remained so until today. Quality has come up in very recent years at Colt, I still don't think they're at that 60s/early 70s level though, especially with the Gold Cups.

If you have to own a series 70 Gold Cup, shoot for an early 70s model. I personally like the pre series 70 Gold Cups, often reffered to as just National Match models because of the lack of a Gold Cup rollmark. Here's my 62 model which is one my favorite 1911s.





With closer examination you'd see the frame rails were obviously peened on these old models, which is indicative of extra fitting, and ensures a tight slide to frame fit, not something you'll see on a later GC. Bushings were also tight on these models as well, and the triggers were just amazing, my 62s trigger is every bit as good my Les Baer's. The bluing was amazing too, better than nearly anything you'll see today in fact.

The old GCs were fantastic, probably my favorite Colt models ever, and they rival some of the best production level 1911s available today in quality. Overall, I don't think they're quite up to a DW Valor, or TRP, but they're very close, and they blow those away from a collectability and styling standpoint IMO.

 

[xr1200]

I own model 70 and 80 gold cup, les baer PRM 2 with guarantee, kimber gold match , SA RO , SA GI highly modified kart barrel.

Shot them all at 25yrds. sand bag rest , speer semi wadcutter target hand loads at bulleye target.

To sum things up all the guns shot almost identical groups, accuarcy was 2.25" - 2.5" groups , repeated 3-4 times for consistancy check.

The Gold Cups, SA RO, Kimber all shot constant 2.5" at 25 yrds.
The baer and the modified SA with match kart barrel both shot 2.25 " groups constanly.

I'm sure if you fitted a kart match barrel to any of the other 3 guns , then the groups would tighten up.

The things to ask yourself is if you think a 1/4" better accuracy is worth a $1000 extra dollars.

Only difference bewteen the colt 70 and 80 series is the firing pin block and diffrences in fitting techiques, the new colts need less fitting do to CNC tooled parts and closer tolerances, on the newer colts the main parts the slide barrel frame are of superior quality when compared to 30-40 yr old forging. The only parts that were better on the old colts were minor parts that may havebeen cast or forged instead of MIM manufacturing, mostly its in the grip safeties and some small levers , most of the new colts use either billet or forged parts in criticle areas.

So if you want to save money then just buy a SA RO $750 standard colt gold cup trophy for $900, both of these guns will out shoot you, the higher priced baers, wilsons etc are really for bragging rights or POSERS at the range.

 

[doc540]

fwiw: I bought this '70's GC for half to a third of what a Wilson, Ed Brown, or Nighthawk would've cost.

I'm pleased with the gun and the deal.

 

[Norton Commando]

I've got an early 70s Gold Cup National Match pistol as it's called and I love it. I purchased it slightly used in the mid 70s and it's the only gun that I will hang on to forever; the rest of my 20-some pistols are expendable.

When you pull the slide back on a Gold Cup it feels as if it’s riding on oiled glass; the finish is impeccable and the adjustable trigger is as good as any.

What's more, the styling is iconic: I can't help but think of Sergeant Rock riding a stallion at full gallop and blasting away at a German Messerschmitt with his 1911 aimed over his shoulder - heady stuff for sure!

 

[SecretSquirrel]

I have a series 70 Gold Cup (NM) and it shoots just a tad better than my Kimber, The real reason I have held on to it is the fact none of my firends have one...

 

[dtvburns]

I have a brand new Series 80 in stainless. It has the 100 Anniversary medallions on it (I know BFD) I am just a recreational shooter but fairly serious about rifle target shooting so accuracy is important to me.

It shoots great! at 21 feet I can put all rounds into one ragged hole. On a bench rest I can get a full mag in to 6 inch target at 50 yards. I shoot it better with it than my buddies do with their Glocks.... What more can I ask? Nothing.

 

[Ankeny]

In the 70s quality started to go downhill at Colt, by the late 70s there wasn't nearly as much work going into the Gold Cups as before, sadly they were really pretty average guns, and have remained so until today.

I had several Gold Cups during that time period and the observation is spot on.

 

[xr1200]

Most of the quality of the gold cups in the 60's and 70's are pretty good , you won't notice much difference in quality or parts or finish. Even the early 80's weren't bad.

Where colt quality really started in fall apart was in the late 80's and early 90's when they started using plastic parts in the guns.

When I purchased colt 1911's during the 90's I would have to go to the biggest shop in town ask to see 3-4 of the same model and field strip every gun and especially remove the grips and look for defects or poorly fitted parts. It usually took 3-4 guns to find one good one. The shop owner was really shocked to see all the defects on the guns once they were field stripped.

Since colt has retooled and relocated they seem to be producing a quality product once again.

 

[manta49]

Some of the guys at the club have 70 series gold cups nice pistols next on my to buy list. But its not often they come up for sale here and when they do they don't sit long.

 

[CAR-AR]

I like my Gold cup, may not be the best but I like to shoot it.

Well I like to shoot all of my .45s.

 

[Johnny Lightning]

I am going to look for a pre 70's gold cup since that is what I really want and for the fact that it shoots just as good as the high end 1911's. Problem is finding one now!

 

[Pete D.]

When I started in Bullseye shooting I bought a stock Gold Cup series 80 for $750. I bought a Kart match barrel and bushing and sent it all off the the late George Madore. He hand fitted the slide and the bushing, reduced the trigger pull, bobbed the hammer a bit and sent the Kart barrel back to me with note to return it as there was nothing wrong with the Colt barrel. When he was done with the gun - cost of his work was less than $500 - the gun would shoot ten shots into the X-ring of the 50 yard slowfire target - the X-ring is 1.6 inches in diameter. It still shoots nearly that well after many 10's of thousands of rounds.
Pete

 

[38 Super Fan]

I am going to look for a pre 70's gold cup since that is what I really want and for the fact that it shoots just as good as the high end 1911's. Problem is finding one now!

Good choice, those are not only the finest GCs ever made, they're possibly the finest 1911s Colt ever made. They're that good. It won't shoot quite as accurately as say a Baer, but I don't think the difference will be huge.

Check out GunBroker, I picked mine up for $1000 there last year, if your area is anything like mine, they'll be hard to find locally, and way overpriced when you do find them.

I did a little quick search over there and this was about the best deal I saw:

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=243422940

 

[SSN Vet]

Sergeant Rock RULES!

 

[hq]

It's IMO a great thing that so many manufacturers offer accurate, "factory custom" 1911:s these days - that has kept older Gold Cups reasonably affordable.

1911 has been one of my favourite handguns for about 30 years and I've got quite a few of them. Some are custom guns, some are cheap chinese repros, but nothing is quite like a GC. Wide trigger with overtravel adjustment, mainly good fit and finish and, if you can't find a (pre) Series 70 gun, having the frame/slide/barrel fitted isn't prohibitively expensive. It does make a difference, even though GC:s tend to be quite accurate out of the box.

Here's the latest addition to my collection. It'll get the usual "national match" -treatment shortly, even though it's a bit of a collectible...

 

[USSR]

Anybody got an idea as to when my Series 70 Gold Cup was made? Serial #70N943XX. Thanks.

Don

 

[mavracer]

My Les Baer will outshoot my '73 Goldcup but it's damn hard to do. It's that close. You'll be very happy with a pre '70 series Cup.

 

[Drail]

NO comparison to a Les Baer. That would be like comparing a Ford Mustang to a Porsche. The difference is all in the price. That said most Gold Cups will shoot better than most shooters can hold them. The Colt of today is not the Colt that built the legend.

 

[mavracer]

NO comparison to a Les Baer. That would be like comparing a Ford Mustang to a Porsche. The difference is all in the price.

yep a little tuning maybe a part swap or two and the right guy at the controls and the Goldcup will outshoot the Baer much like my Mustang will, with regularity, show it's tail lights to a Porsche that cost 3X as much.

 

[lmccrock]

Most of the quality of the gold cups in the 60's and 70's are pretty good , you won't notice much difference in quality or parts or finish. Even the early 80's weren't bad.

Where colt quality really started in fall apart was in the late 80's and early 90's when they started using plastic parts in the guns.

Well, I have a ca. 1985 Series 80 Gold Cup and I would say the mid-80's were not a good time for them. It is ok...after replacing the collet bushing (which broke a finger off) and the rear sight (kept disassembling itself), I could shoot it without worrying about parts flying off. Oh, the front sight flew off once while firing so that was replaced, too. The trigger is mushy but not horrible...compared to a Glock. So, replace enough parts, and it could be great.

Lee

 

[forindooruseonly]

This thread made me dig mine out of the safe and get a pic, as I was already photographing a couple of other guns. It is a series 80 Gold Cup worked over by Colt's custom shop and one of my favorite pistols.